Mamelodi Sundowns News Today: Mokoena reveals mental struggles, cup struggles explained & more

Latest Mamelodi Sundowns news, including Teboho Mokoena’s revelations that he is not okay inside and why the club has been struggling in domestic cups.

Mokoena reveals personal struggles

Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Teboho Mokoena has revealed that he is going through a tough time despite putting in brave displays on the pitch.

Mokoena was one of the outstanding players as Sundowns ended their five-year wait for an MTN8 title following a 2-0 win over Orlando Pirates on Saturday.

The midfielder scored the opening goal before he gave away a penalty which was saved by Ronwen Williams and Iqraam Rayners would come from the bench to seal it with a late goal from the spot.

Mokoena has opened up about the personal struggles he is dealing with which are affecting him mentally.

“It’s been tough two weeks for me, I lost my grandfather two weeks ago,” he said on SuperSport TV as per iDiski Times.

“I almost lost my brother who got stabbed the day before we played Guinea. They stabbed him multiple times, it’s been tough, but I’d like to dedicate this game to him, he is in the hospital bed. I hope justice will be served.

“I’m happy that we won but inside I’m not really okay because it’s sad what happened to my family and you always have to show up doesn’t matter how you’re feeling.

“I dedicate this game to him, my brother and I hope he recovers.”

Why Sundowns struggle in domestic cups

Meanwhile, Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has weighed in on the impact of winning the MTN8 which they had last claimed in 2021.

The Brazilians ended Orlando Pirates’ four-year dominance and Cardoso is delighted although he admits other upcoming domestic cups might be difficult to compete for since his team will be prioritizing continental glory.

“With the heart, passion, organisation and a lot of love. It’s very difficult to play against Orlando Pirates and it’s absolutely difficult to get the two-goal difference without conceding any,” Cardoso told SuperSport TV.

“It’s for these people here, they deserve, they came in numbers, and I think it was time, it was time to give these people a domestic cup. Obviously, it’s difficult but sometimes people don’t understand but sometimes you need to prioritise competitions and that also takes out energy from some of them.

“Obviously, we wanted to give this trophy to the club, the players worked very hard, I stated myself from the first day telling that this should be our objective. We don’t what’s going forward because we going to be in many competitions.

“It will be difficult to face Carling in the middle of the week when we play Champions League on the weekend, but these guys they understand, they have a lot of trust -trust on each other, on us, we trust them and bravo congratulations an amazing game. We understood how to play it, it’s just not how you play it but how you compete. We were very brave and we did very well,” he added.